Million 'at risk’ from Care Bill

More than a million elderly and disabled people in need of care could be
totally shut out of the system because of the fine print of the Government’s
reforms, the leaders of Britain’s biggest caring charities warn today.

The new Bill, based on the recommendations of the Dilnot Commission, promises to cap the amount that anyone pays for care in their lifetime at £72,000Photo: IAN JONES

A change in how needs are assessed could strip 135,000 frail and vulnerable people in England of state-funded care on which they currently rely, signatories fear.

And almost 900,000, who already have to pay if they want help with basic tasks such as washing and dressing, would not be able to benefit from a cap on the cost of care, the charities have warned David Cameron.

The warning, from the heads of 38 leading charities including Age UK, the Alzheimer’s Society, Scope and the British Red Cross, comes in a letter to The Sunday Telegraph which has also been sent to the Prime Minister.

They say that the Care and Support Bill, which will usher in a cap on the cost of care to prevent people being forced to sell homes, should transform the system for future generations and leave the Coalition with a “proud” legacy.

But they add that they are now “seriously concerned” that when the final details of how the system is to be implemented are worked out, huge numbers of frail, elderly people will still be left without any help with their care.

Under the current system, only elderly people with assets, including their family home, worth less than £23,500 get help with the cost of care. Even then, only those deemed to have the greatest physical needs qualify.

Those are assessed on a four-point scale ranging from “low” to “critical” with just people above a threshold — decided by local social services – getting help.

In recent years, with funds squeezed, councils have tightened up criteria, meaning that in most areas only those deemed to have “substantial” needs qualify — usually meaning they can no longer live on their own.

The new Bill, based on the recommendations of the Dilnot Commission, promises to cap the amount that anyone pays for care in their lifetime at £72,000 and dramatically raise the financial threshold, meaning that fewer people will have to sell their homes.

It will also abolish the postcode lottery so that the same criteria for deciding who is in need of care is used in all areas of England.

Crucially, the decision on where the new line is drawn will be set not in the new Bill but in George Osborne’s spending review next month.

The charities fear that, after bargaining between the Treasury and the Department of Health, it is likely to be set at “substantial”.

That would mean the end of help for 99,000 elderly people and 36,000 disabled people assessed as having “moderate” needs but living in areas where that rating qualifies.

The Department of Health said: “We will shortly publish draft regulations to assist with debate on the Care Bill.”